EAA AVIATION CENTER, OSHKOSH, Wisconsin — Jack J. Pelton, CEO and chairman of the Experimental Aircraft Association, received multiple honors in November 2017 from the National Aeronautic Association, FAA, and the Kansas Aviation Hall of Fame.
Pelton was named one of six 2017 recipients of NAA’s Wesley McDonald Distinguished Statesman of Aviation Award.
The award recognizes “outstanding living Americans who, by their efforts over an extended period of years, have made contributions of significant value to aeronautics, and have reflected credit upon America and themselves.”
Pelton received that award during NAA’s annual fall awards program on Nov. 29 in Arlington, Virginia.
On Nov. 28, Pelton received the Friend of Safety Award from the FAA’s Aviation Safety organization. It honored Pelton’s leadership in developing low-cost, safety-enhancing equipment for general aviation cockpits. EAA partnered with small, innovative companies that typically were not part of the certified equipment marketplace.
Those awards followed Pelton’s Nov. 11 induction into the Kansas Aviation Hall of Fame, which recognizes citizens of Kansas who have made contributions to aviation of statewide or national significance.
Along with his leadership of EAA, Pelton was recognized for his tenure as president, CEO, and chairman of Cessna Aircraft Company.
Pelton first headed EAA in October 2012, serving in a volunteer role as chairman of the board and providing transition leadership for a three-year period. The EAA board then named him CEO/chairman, a full-time position, in November 2015.